I can't post anything new that hasn't already been touched upon. But you asked, so I'll answer:
Let me state that I feel that I might have a ticking time bomb on my hands, like many other SVT owners have stated. All the horror stories of waterpump failure, transaxle/transmission failures, paint, sunroof, alignment, bumper sag, etc. Just have me wondering when, not if, this will happen to my car. I have a black 1998 E0 SVT with almost 36k miles.
My whole life I vowed I'd never own a Ford product-- because of the various horror stories I've heard my whole life about Ford "Quality" from other Ford owners. But when the SVT Contour debuted I weakened my stance a little and said that was the only new Ford product I would ever buy. I based this decision on many aspects of automobile ownership. From reliability, dealer service, to performance-- I thought the SVT Contour could and would provide all these. I must admit I was really taken with the styling of the SVT. Very understated, and tastefully done.
I kept reading how the Contour was Ford's "world car" and how the SVT is a delightful handling car (which it is). So I figured it had to be reliable and made from high-quality parts since it's the "world car" that Ford was supposedly basing its future upon. I then figure that it's a "poor-man's BMW" in the performance aspect. This is exactly what I've wanted in a car: reliability and performance for a reasonable price-- with the 4-door utility and fwd for winter/rain. I also thought maybe owning an SVT vehicle might get me some extra "respect" from the dealer if I ever had to bring it in for service.
to get to the point:
I find this website after I get my SVT, and come to discover the myriad problems with not only SVTs but Contours/Mystiques in general. It is true that all cars have their own idiosyncrasies and unique problems, but many of the SVT's could have been avoided. When I (and other SVT owners) were getting into these cars, we were expecting special vehicles with special, high-quality parts. Not just worked over extras from the parts bin (as seems to me to be the case).
- Why should we worry when (not IF)our waterpumps are going to fail on our SPECIAL SVT-prepped Duratec engines?
- Why are my "understated and tasteful" body parts sagging?
- Why mate a brittle, fragile transmission to a high(er)-output engine if it's already known to be weak?
- The LSD issue was raised already, but it would have been nice in separating the SVT from a normal Contour-- and well worth the extra money it would have cost to every SVT owner on this board.
- Why skimp on the wheel/tire combo? 17 inch wheels should've been standard.
- Why does my 1998 Ford Contour SVT 4-door sedan rattle and creak worse than my 1979 Pontiac Firebird Formula, or any of my nine (9) previous supposed "rattletrap" sports-cars did?
- Why doesn't my SPECIAL SVT-prepped Duratec V6 have a proper lubrication system to deal with the wonderful handling this car was designed with? Oh, I can only take high-speed left-hand turns, not right-- don't want to blow my SVT-prepped Duratec.
- Why no oil pressure gauge??? For a high(er)-output engine, you'd think this is a must?
- The 6-speed? would have been nice, but I understand none were available at the time. That's not SVT or Ford's fault. It only would have helped the rev-happy Duratec, imo.
In closing-- I do love my brief experience with my Contour SVT so far. Perhaps if I found this site before I went looking for Contours, I would have chose another car. Perhaps not... Only time will tell if it was worth it or not, I suppose. I did purchase an extended Ford warrantee for 3 years/36k miles in December 2000. Here's to hoping I won't need to use it. Or that it covers whatever is bound to happen?
Sorry if this kinda turned into a rant, but I hate that feeling wondering if I got screwed or not... Especially when I really like what this car should have been and what it had the potential for.
Best Regards--
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zero www.prilly.org 1998 Ford Contour SVT E0 black
1993 Mitsubishi Eclipse GSX white
[This message has been edited by zerosvt (edited April 01, 2001).]
